


Destiny Writes

by AnieActuality



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrinette, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Identity Reveal, LadyNoir - Freeform, Marichat, Multi, Other, Secret Identity, slowburn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-15
Updated: 2017-10-17
Packaged: 2019-01-17 16:46:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 14,602
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12369882
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnieActuality/pseuds/AnieActuality
Summary: Marie always wondered why she shared so many similarities with the main character from Miraculous Ladybug. What she didn't expect was to wake up living in a world where Kwamis, super-villains, and boys with pretty green eyes and dressed like a cat were real.--------A bit of 'what if Marinette knew everything that was going to happen' scenario.





	1. Origins pt. 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first attempt at publishing a fanfic. Honestly I just sort of got carried away writing this 'what if' scenario and it got away from me. I'm not a good writer by any means, but I wanted to share for the first time, especially with the new season almost here. I'm going to avoid mentioning spoilers for the new season, with only mild speculation for plot sake, but once the series is available online I'll hopefully start implementing it to the story. 
> 
> Disclaimer: I'm obviously going to be making changes to the events from the series since that was the whole goal of this to begin with. Some of the things I'll end up changing may not be what everyone wants or is happy with, but I hope it will at least be interesting. As of now the story is smut free, and I have no intention of adding it in, but if that changes for any reason I will give considerable warning and tag appropriately.

“Oh dear.” I muttered under my breath as I watched my best friend of 15 years bolt down the street with her phone in hand and a gleeful expression on her face.

I could already tell the situation is a lost cause, but I still dragged myself to follow her hoping I could wrangle her away from making a spectacle of herself.

I pulled the visor of my old baseball cap over my eyes out of shame as I spotted Anna snapping a thousand photos of a brightly colored billboard.

“Can you believe this?! They just have advertisements for the show all over the city! And look! Over there is where that one scene was shot in episode 12!” Anna shrieked causing everyone within earshot to turn towards us and glare.

I groaned softly, but keep my mouth shut. This trip is as much for her as it is for me. My parents decided to take a trip to Paris when I decided where I wanted to go to college next year. I still have one whole year left, but I applied for the early application process and was shocked out of my mind when I was accepted into the program pending my graduation.

It gave Papa an excuse to come home and visit where he grew up and where he met Maman. They were treating this trip like a second honeymoon. Anna and her mom of course were invited to come with us. Papa may own one of the best bakeries in the San Fran area, but her mom was a michillen star chef at a fancy restaurant in a swanky hotel. The trip was no splurge on cost.

Our parents were longtime friends and Anna and I have been best friends since we can remember. 

But I wasn’t the only one excited for this trip apparently. While I was scoping out the campus and figuring out how I was going to manage my day to day life, Anna was freaking out about the Miraculous Ladybug show she had become obsessed over. 

I’ll admit the show did intrigue me. Despite it being a children’s program, there was a strange sort of connection I felt when the show first aired. Anna was convinced we were the main characters of the show, and I was reluctant to tell her she was wrong. Granted neither of us lived in Paris, or dealt with magical villains and superheros, there were a startling amount of similarities between the main characters and us. 

The main character and I were both half Chinese and half French, as well as being the daughter to a famous baker. There was even the strange coincidence of us both being artists. I was sort of a wide ranged artist with a varied skill set, but my biggest passion was fashion.

I loved the fashion industry and the glamour of seeing designs go down the runway. I designed and made most of my wardrobe and with my skills, I was proud to say I had made it into the fashion program for my new school fairly easily.

“Marie, tell me you aren’t freaking out about finally being in Paris!” Anna squealed as she bounced over to me with her phone still recording in her hand.

Even our names were similar to the characters from the show.

Anna looked pretty similar to Alya with her bronze colored skin and honey colored eyes. Her figure had curves in all the right places. Her hair didn’t have the red ombre, but that was only because our current school was pretty strict about hair color. She even had the same mole on her face.

I ran a hand through my inky black hair. Anna used to say it was so black it sometimes looked blue in the sun. My French heritage showed through with the faintest dusting of freckles over my nose and my bright blue eyes.

Yes, just like that damn character. 

Where Anna was curves, I was slim and toned. I had taken up gymnastics as a child, and even though I hadn’t set foot in a gym in 2 years, I was still sporting the gymnast figure.

I sighed with a small smile, “Of course I’m excited to be here Anna. I’m also freaking out a little about moving here all on my own next year.”

“Oh come on. You’re fluent in French thanks to your dad, so you won’t have to worry about a language barrier, and your one of the most responsible people I know. You’re going to be taking the first step towards your dream and who knows. Your dad used to own a bakery here once before right? Maybe your parents will decide they miss Paris and open up a new Bakery here so they can be close by.” She said placing both hands on my shoulders reassuringly. “Besides, I overheard my mom talk about meeting with a few restaurants while she was here and that they would probably try to offer her a job in the city. She does like to talk about how she loved going to culinary school here back in the day.”

I nodded suppressing a grin. It may be my dream to go to school here for fashion, but Anna was right about the part of both our families considering a move for the long term. Anna wasn’t feeling the pressure of college choice right now. She decided when she graduated she would work on her degree online while figuring out if she wanted to pursue media in reporting or focus on her personal blog online.

She had a huge following on youtube and her blog with all sorts of daily life videos. People felt a connection with her and sought out her channel for both entertainment and advice.

“You’re right. You know I just like to psych myself out. It’s going to be great I’m sure.” I replied.

“Besides, maybe you’ll find your very own Adrien since you’ll be doing the whole fashion thing, and of course be needing models to wear your stuff.” a sly smirk making it’s way across her face.

I huffed and shoved her away playfully. Anna always persisted in making fun of my painful dating history. It wasn’t like I was hurting for attention. The argument could be made that Anna and I were two of the most popular girls in our school. But our entire grade kind of grew up together as well.

When you go to school with the same kids since pre K, you all tend to remember the snot-nosed and hair pulling days over the fact that someone finally hit puberty and is no longer seeing girls or boys as having cooties.

“Funny you should talk considering your dating history!” We laughed as she haughtily fliped her hair over her shoulder.

“My fans would be devastated if I started dating someone. I’m a beacon for girls our age to show that you don’t need to be dating anyone to get the most out of life.” 

She was absolutely right. It made the decision to pack up and move across the world even easier since I didn’t have anyone emotionally tying me down. Even if I couldn’t see my family and friends for a long time, I could still come back no matter how long I would be away, and pick up right where I left off. No one in a relationship would wait for me of the off chance I ‘might’ come back eventually. 

No. My goal was to get my education here and then jump right into working the fashion world at its very heart.

“Common girl! We still got half the city to explore!” Anna shouted as she tugged on my arm. I follow her shaking my head but smiling as we continued down the street.

The day wound down and our arms were full of shopping bags, mostly stuffed with food and funny little trinkets that made us laugh.

Our parents left us to explore the city knowing I most likely would have to do it on my own in the coming year. We were heading back to our hotel when Anna pointed a bag laden arm towards a bright red bus coming down the street.

“Look Marie! That bus has Miraculous Ladybug on it!” She screeches excitedly. She’s set down her bag and reaches into her pocket to grab her phone. Most likely to snap a photo or video of the coming bus.

Her head was down but I watched as the bus made it’s way down the street at an alarmingly fast rate. The bus was swerving and the rest of the pedestrians were beginning to slow as well to watch. Something was obviously wrong. I spotted the driver of the bus looking panicked and trying to get the vehicle under control, but it didn’t seem to be working.

Everyone who had been crossing the street ran to get to safety, but I watched in horror as an elderly asian man was staggering his way across the street using a cane. 

I didn’t think twice as I dropped all my bags and ran toward the man wearing a familiar red Hawaiian shirt and flung my arms out in front of me. 

Time seemed to slow down as I registered the shock on the old mans face as I pushed him aside. A part of my brain registered regret for having shoved him away so roughly. The next thing I registered was Anna screaming my name in panic, but the sound was quickly drowned out by the roaring of the bus as it moved closer. 

I’m not sure what it feels like to be hit by a bus, but I expected some sort of excruciating pain, or at least a jarring sensation before I died.

Instead all I felt was floating. The world around me turned white and then strangely enough, a swirl of what looked like hundreds of sparkling red ladybugs fluttered around my body before dispersing as quickly as they came and finding my eyes growing uncontrollably heavy.

Suddenly, I hear the sound of my phone alarm buzzing. I opened eyes and found myself buried beneath a pile of blankets per my usual sleeping habit. I fumbled around for my phone blindly, trying to shake myself from my sleep induced haze. 

What a strange dream.

I could hear my Maman’s voice muffled through the thickness of the blanket. I couldn't make out what she said, but I could swear she was speaking French.

Of course I knew she’s fluent in the language just as well as I am, but she has always made a habit of either speaking to me in English of Mandarin. Papa was the one who insisted on speaking French at home.

When I finally located my phone I pulled it under the safety of the blanket and blindly shut it off. Groaning, I know it’s going to be a coffee sort of day with how groggy I could feel. I fling the covers off my head and stared up into a bright skylight that hadn’t been in my room before. 

I remained frozen puzzling out the appearance of a hole in my ceiling when the fuzziness in my brain finally seemed to clear enough to recognize I do in fact ‘not’ have a skylight in my room.

“What the?” I muttered sitting up and glancing around the room.

It was not my room at all. It was not even the Hotel room we were staying at last night. If I didn’t know any better I would swear this was in fact Mar-

“Marinette, did you hear me? You’re going to be late for your first day of school!”  
Maman shouted from what seems like the floor below me.

Say whaaaaaaaaaat?

Leaning over the rail I shouted back in French “Coming!” 

I felt like a million things were running through my head as I took in the sight of the room I was in. But the main thought that came to mind out rules all the rest. 

“That’s a lot of pink.”

It was tasteful with black furniture and black and white designs scattered throughout the room, but there was still an inordinate amount of pink covering the room. A work table was set up with neatly organized art supplies. A custom dress form I would have killed to own back home, was set up in the corner behind a lovely lounge and little photos of me, my parents and a few people I didn’t recognize were pinned to the wall over a desktop computer.

So I prided myself on being pretty smart, and quick on my feet, but what all evidence of this room were pointing to seem extremely impossible.

Decided it best I at least find my maman first and if maybe that this happened to be a prank of some kind. I made my way down the ladder and towards the trap door in the floor. 

Walking down the stairs felt like dejavu when I saw the exact same layout from the house in the show pan out in front of me. 

Maman... My Maman, was in the kitchen fixing breakfast. When she turned around and sees me, she smiled in the way I was familiar with, and comes to meet me as I walked towards her. In a daze I kissed her on the cheek like I do ever morning and looked around the kitchen and living room confused.

“Morning Marinette, you should eat breakfast quickly and get ready for school. You don’t want to be late on your first day.”

Alright now I know this has to be a dream. Maman doesn’t know anything about the show Miraculous Ladybug. While Anna has made me watch it a hundred times, Maman has no clue about anything from the show. 

I go to pinch myself as I sit down at the table wordlessly and winced at the sharp pain.

Okay not a dream... Am I dead?

That’s the only thing I can think of at the moment with the events leading up to me waking up here. Do you start over in a fictional world when you die?

“Marinette? are you alright?”

I looked over at Maman and forced a smile. I didn’t know how to deal with her calling me Marinette instead of Marie. “Yeah I’m just nervous, that’s all.”

My French had been getting a workout recently with the whole trip to Paris and my parents both having made me practice a month in advance at home before we had left.

“Are you worried that Chloe will be in your class again? That would be 4 years in a row wouldn’t it? At least you can look forward to this being the last year before you go off to ESMOD.” she turned back towards the sink while speaking.

I felt my eyebrows pinch together. So I was still in my last year and still going to ESMOD next year? But I thought the characters in the show were around 14-15. I knew for sure something was up when Maman mentioned Chloe just like the show. Even if the dialogue was a little different, this whole scenario was playing out like the origin episodes. 

Just as I was setting down the container of french nesquik I remembered the scene from the show as the orange fell from the fruit bowl. Reaching out I snatched the orange before it could bump into anything and managed to save making the inevitable mess I knew was coming.

Huh...

“Good reflexes Marinette!” Maman exclaimed as she came up behind me. I let out a forced laugh as I downed my breakfast and made my escape upstairs to get ready.

I located the closet in my room and stared blankly at the assortment of clothes available. I was suddenly sure this was purgatory because most every article of clothing had some kind of pink in it. I must have pissed off some kind of god to get sent here to live out a tv series where the main character wears nothing but pink.

Sure pink used to be my favorite color a few years ago, but I was a kid and as a fashion obsessed kid, you can’t limit yourself to only one color or you’ll never grow as an artist.

Bypassing the pink capri pants and dull selection of t-shirts, I pulled out a pair of white capri’s (still the same style as the pink overload) and a pretty maroon colored blouse. It was sleeveless and came up to wrap around the neck. I found a pair of black ballet flats and a backpack already willed with books and a class schedule on the back of a map of the school. Looking out the window I was greeted to the view of the school I knew was my destination. 

Standing in front of my mirror I was relieved to see I looked the same. My hair wasn’t as short as Marinette’s from the show, but rather reached the middle of my back. I pulled the elastic from my hair that held the pigtails that I only wore to sleep in. I looked like me in every way.

All this was crazy. My parents were still the same, my college plans were also the same. I couldn’t recognize anyone besides my parents from the photos pinned on my walls but I assumed most of them were classmates. I seemed to be older that the characters from the show, but I was definitely in the the same house and location setting.

This didn’t make sense though since I remember visiting the exact bakery the show’s was modeled from with Anna yesterday and there was no school of park across the street like there was now.

I knew I couldn’t mention any of this to my parents. I’ve seen enough movies where the person pulled into another world doesn’t say anything or they’ll be sent to the nut house. Not like I thought my parents would have me committed, but I wasn’t going to give them a reason to worry. 

Grabbing my backpack I ran downstairs and out the door to the apartment. Down the next set of stairs I saw a door that led to the back of a kitchen I assumed was for the bakery. When I made my way through the kitchen into the main part of the shop I felt even more confused. It didn’t look anything like the interior of the shop when I visited it yesterday. 

Papa and Maman were in the store arranging the confections under the glass like I had seen them do every morning back home in San Francisco. It was like a normal day but the location had obviously changed.

Papa was humming the French national anthem when he pulled a box of pistachio flavored macarons out and presented them in front of me. I couldn’t help but smile because Papa still knew my favorite flavor was pistachio. They had a design from what I guessed was dried powdered sugar on the tops and what I recognize as the design from the show. 

“Thanks papa these are amazing.” I said reaching to grab the box. Whatever nightmare I was in, I might as well play along.

“I’m glad you like them. Your design is a real hit for the store. People keep commenting on the new logo.” he said holding up a sketch of the design now covering the entire store. 

I forced another smile because it wasn’t really my design. I wasn’t really Marinette, but I didn’t know what else to say. Then I remembered how I ended up here in the first place.

I had saved the old asian man in the red shirt.

Gasping I realized this was how the origins episode began. Marinette had saved master Fu from getting hit and he chose her to become ladybug. 

I ignored the look of confusion on Papa’s face and reached up on my toes to kiss him on the cheek. Giving a quick peck to Maman, I rushed out the door with the excuse that I was going to be late.

Screeching to a halt at the sidewalk I looked across the road hoping to spot the bright red t-shit I had seen right before I died. When I didn’t see him, I worried I was too early for the event from the show to happen.

“Are you looking for me?” Turning around and glancing down I spotted the same old man I had saved from getting hit by the bus and who I knew had to be master Fu from the show. When I looked at him confused me laughed lightly. “I thought it might be best not to have you saving me from getting run over all over again.”

I blinked down at the man, “Wait you mean I really did save you from getting hit by a bus?” I felt like my brain was going to turn into mush.

“Indeed you did. I have to say, I wasn’t expecting you to jump in front of it like that, but sometimes this is just how destiny likes to work.” 

“Wait, I am so confused. So your saying all of this is real? I’m living in the show?” I ask clutching my forehead wondering if I might just swoon.

“It was always more than just a show. Didn’t you ever wonder why your life was so similar to the characters you watched? Why you felt a sort of connection you couldn’t explain?” I couldn’t say anything back. Answering felt like I was admitting to something impossible. “You were always meant to risk your life saving me. Events will play out the same though you may notice some variation. Life isn’t a simple children tv series. You will have to make decisions as Ladybug that Marinette from the show never had to face.” 

“Now wait just a minute!” I said holding a hand up. “You’re saying I’m supposed to become Ladybug? That magic is real? I’m not cut out to be a superhero, I just want to go back to my regular life!” I was doing my best not to screech and draw attention from the street towards us. “My name isn’t Marinette, it’s Marie!”

“You may be Marie, but you are also Marinette. Ladybug is who you are destined to be. You can’t go back to your regular life. You died.” He said the last part with obvious remorse. “You were given the opportunity at a second chance. Destiny knew you were going to jump in front of that bus no matter what, but it gave you the knowledge to adapt and have a second chance in this life.” 

I felt my heart drop into the pit of my stomach. So I did die. This wasn’t purgatory, this was supposed to be a second chance to live.

I felt like I was drowning.

“I can’t go back no matter what?” I whispered.

“I’m truly sorry.” He said placing a consoling hand over mine. “But there is a greater part of you that you will begin to discover. You have a duty to this reality now. There is strength in you Marie, and you were always meant to share it with the world.” 

I heard the loud ringing of the school bell from across the street drawing my attention from master Fu. When I looked back, he was gone. I had so much more to ask him. A part of me wanted to blame him for what had happened, but I just could bring myself to be angry at him. It was my decision to run in front of the bus and I would do it again despite the circumstances. That didn’t mean I was accepting this whole Ladybug thing, but I was at least grateful for the option of a second chance.

Running across the street, I ran up the stairs and located my first class. It seemed the bell I heard was only the warning bell and I was just in time to grab my seat. Without thinking I plopped down into the seat Marinette always sat it just as Madame Bustier called for Nino to relocate. It was sort of surreal to see a real life Nino versus a 3D version. 

I was so focused on the reality of real life Nino, a pale manicured hand slammed down on the desk in front of my face startling me.

“Marintte Dupain-Cheng.”

“Aaaand here we go.” I muttered as I glanced up and saw teen barbie glaring down at me. Chloe would be considered pretty if she didn’t wear the awful makeup and match her wardrobe to her hair. She wore sunglasses on her head for whatever reason, and I suddenly understood without knowing her character, why Marinette and Chloe never got along in the show.

“That’s my seat.” she said eyeing my top to bottom with a look of disgust. I knew it wasn’t because of my choice in clothes. I definitely looked good, and I wasn’t afraid to admit it. It was then I wondered it Chloe felt threatened by me.

“I don’t think there is a particular seating order.” I said giving her a blank look.

Another girl with red hair I assumed was Sabrina slid into the seat beside me. “We don’t care Marinette. New year, means you don’t get to sit here like last year.”

Chloe nodded as she turned her body to the side. “So go sit beside that new girl over there.”

Just then I was both ecstatic and pleased to see Anna (aka Alya) turn around and glare in Chloe’s direction. I don’t know how I didn’t recognize her. She looked exactly the same except with the addition of red ombre ends.

Before I could say anything Chloe continued her little tirade, “Adrien’s arriving today, and since that’s his seat, this is going to be my seat. Got it?”

My brain ground to a direct halt. “Adrien?” I asked blankly. How could I forget about Adrien? 

Both girls burst into high pitched giggles, “Can you believe she doesn’t know who he is?” To be fair I only arrived here this morning, so Parisian models were not something I was knowledgeable about. I managed to drown the rest of Sabrina and Chloe’s predicable dialogue as I finally came to terms with the idea of Adrien now being a real person, just like them and all the other characters I knew from the show. 

Just as my brain was finally catching up I spotted Alya standing beside Chloe with her arms crossed over her chest. “Who elected you queen of seats?”

I glanced beyond them to see why the teacher was not intervening and saw the woman giving a nervous glance towards Chloe. I suppose it made sense considering her father was mayor and all. He probably donated a bunch of his hotel money to the school and all the teachers were most likely worried to get on the girls bad side.

This was the kind of stuff they wouldn’t talk about in the show I guess. Money is the best form of manipulation, and Chloe would’ve have never gotten away with her heiress like attitude otherwise. So this world was just as messed up as the previous one. 

My attention focused back on the conversation just as I saw Alya reach for my wrist and drag me up from my seat. I managed to snatch my bag and the box of macarons before following her down to the seat in the front, all without tripping like Marinette from the show.

Thankfully I at least might be able to avoid some embarrassing clumsy moments if anything, with having watched the show so many times.

“That girl is so stuck up!” I heard Alya exclaim in the tone I was so familiar with growing up. I was at least glad that even if I didn’t grow up with her in this world, she was still my best friend in every life. 

“Well you handled her like a champ. I admire that kind of attitude.” I replied with a fond smile.

“Well I get my inspiration from girls like Majestia.” She said pulling up her phone and showing me a comic book heroin. Even their obsession with superhero’s were the same. “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil, is that good people do nothing. And that girl back there is definitely evil.”

I laughed though I thought about the words she said. Would I really have to fight evil super-villains because of some twisted destiny I had to fulfill? Fu said that real life wasn’t like a kids show. Does that mean that if I do nothing people will die?

I didn’t want to think about that and the responsibility that would mean. I felt like I was coming full circle with the doubts Marinette faced in the first episode.

Grinning at Alya, I flip open the lid to the box of macrons and offer her one. Her eyes went wide in suprise before reaching and snagging one of the delectable treats.

“I’m Mari-” I hesitate before continuing “nette. Yeah, Marinette”

She doesn’t seem to register my hesitation and grined back holding the treat in her hand, “Alya.”

The rest of class dragged along. It was strange taking a class in French designed for French students. I knew I would have to get used to my lessons being in French, but I expected that to be at ESMOD with the idea that there would be plenty of International students to connect with. The material was easy enough, but I wouldn’t have been accepted into a school oversees if my grades weren’t decently above average.

It gave me a moment to digest the situation I found myself in. At any moment one of my classmates, would become overly aggressive in the face of some bullying. I couldn’t pick out exactly who Ivan was, but I was assuming it was the biggest guy in class who wore a heavy metal t-shirt.

17-18 wasn’t that much different to 14-15, but I liked to think us students were a bit more mature than to resort to adolescent bullying over someone else’s crush. In my school in San Francisco, we had our fair share of high school drama, but it you didn’t want to be the subject of bullying, you didn’t bully others. 

Discreetly, I managed to do a few internet searches on my phone and discovered the school I now went to was actually a very expensive private school, mostly for child celebrities or kids from wealthy families. I guess it explained why there weren’t that many students compared to my old school and why there were so many celebrity kids from the show going to school here. 

I glanced back and noticed the dejected look on Chloe’s face with Adrien having not shown up in class today. That was a can of worms I wasn’t ready to even think about. I never had issues with boys, and the idea of acting like a lovestruck teen honestly repulsed me. 

When the bell for class to end rang the teacher announced for those doing the physical education class to head to the stadium, and for everyone else to go to the library for study hall. It was a bit strange that we didn’t just relocate for each class like we did in America, but rather the majority of our classes were held in the same classroom except for PE and Lab. 

I stood up and turned around to witness the unfolding of our first super villain. Just as I suspected the big guy was reading a note as anger contorted on his face and he jumped from his seat and rushed the jock looking guy beside him.

“Kim!” Surprisingly Ivan reared back his arm and actually let the punch follow through. Unlike the show Ivan managed to land a hit before the teacher shrieked for Ivan to report to the principals office. 

I guess this really isn’t a kids show.

Since there wasn’t much I could do now except wait, I grabbed my stuff and tugged Alya by the arm to follow the rest of the students to the library.

“Whoa first day of school, and there is already a fight! This place is awesome!” Alya said bouncing on her toes. I just laughed at her excitement for the action going on.

“Well today has definitely been different that’s for sure. I have a feeling it’s just going to get crazier from here on out.”

“That reminds me. Those macrons are definitely crazy, probably the best I’ve ever had, and my mom happens to be a chef. Where did you get them?” 

I chuckled softly as we entered the library with the other students. “My parents own the bakery across the street. My Papa made them this morning.”

“No way!” She whisper yelled as we picked out a table to set our backpacks down. “My mom said she went to Culinary school with your dad. When my dad finally got a job in Paris, my mom jumped at the chance to move back here with me and my sisters.”

I did my best to hide the shock from my face. Anna didn’t have a dad or any siblings in the other world. Her father had passed away in some freak accident with a panther at the Zoo. I guess this reality, Alya gets a life with her whole family and what they could have been like. It made me feel less of a loss that I had all this memories and moments with my Anna, but only a new friendship with Alya.

We talked softly over our other classes, with me sitting there waiting for the other shoe to drop. It didn’t take long for the whole building to shake violently and a loud roar to echo throughout the building. 

Alya snatched my hand up and hauled me to the security monitors that were set up in the library for whatever reason. A bunch of other students were gathered round looking at the screen in horror. 

There on the screen was a real life Stoneheart making his way from the school building. All the students and faculty began rushing the doors. Alya held her phone and was grinning ear to ear.

“What are you doing?” I couldn’t help but ask even though I knew the answer.

“When there’s a supervillian, a superhero is never far behind!” she screeched running out the door.

I sighed before walking over to pick up my backpack. That was definitely something I would need to address with this whole new reality thing. I knew Alya’s character was supposed to be the Lois Lane to my Superman, but having her place herself into constant danger was going to be a problem. I half wished she would just get the fox miraculous already so I wouldn’t have to worry about her safety as much.

God this day sucks.

I ran out the school building avoiding the other students gawking at the wreckage and made my way straight home to the bakery. I opted to use the back entrance to the bakery to go upstairs, hopefully bypassing both my parents and get the miraculous before news spread and they came looking for me. 

I knew exactly what’s waiting for me in my room when I get there. A part of my brain was only slightly concerned that a stranger has been up in my room to begin with. or maybe it was his kwami while master Fu distracted my parents. Either way.

Not cool.

When I get up to my room I latched the trap door and glanced around until I spot the familiar black and red box of doom.

I held it in my hand like a ticking bomb as I took a deep breath before shutting my eyes and flipping the lid open. There was a flash of light from behind my eyelids and there in front of my is a red creature with a bulbous head looked at me with a beaming smile.

“Marie! It’s a pleasure to meet you!” Tikki exclaimed happily.

I grimaced and then offer a hesitant smile, “I guess it’s nice to meet you too Tikki.”

“I know this must be a lot to take in, but I’m here to help you in any way I can.” She politely offered. 

“So if I wanted you to tell me how to find master Fu, you would take me to him?” I gave her an arched brow.

She hanged her head shaking it side to side. “I’m sorry Marie, the Master thought it would be best for you to first accept your role as Ladybug before speaking to him again. This will be an adjust for you on many levels, and he doesn’t want you to become dependent on him.”

“Well he’s not really giving me much choice in the matter now is he?” I huffed in frustration.

“If it helps any, we all are confident you will be the best Ladybug and that no one could have as much compassion and determination for the role.” 

I sighed, “I guess that means I’ve got to do this. I suppose I should ask a few questions before we transform.”

Turns out the transformation does enhance both my strength and flexibility as well as my overall sense of balance. The suit itself cannot be cut and it’s magical durability will minimize most bruising. That will be helpful in avoiding having to explain any sudden injuries to the parents or teachers. We couldn’t have anyone wondering if I was being bullied or abused.

All the other rules were the same. Once I use the lucky charm, I have 5 minutes before the transformation disappears. Tikki does in fact prefer to eat chocolate chip cookies and so I will need to have them on hand for her just in case.

“So I really can’t tell Chat Noir who I am? It doesn’t really seem fair since I know who he is behind the mask.” I ask always having wondered why Marinette wasn’t allowed to tell beyond the safety of her friends and family.

“Honestly, that rule was for the benefit of the entertainment in your old life. You can make whatever decision you think is best.” Tikki replied.

I stood there thinking it over for a minute. “Maybe I should hold off on the identity reveal? If this will be anything like the show, I don’t want to have to deal with a teenage boy buzzing around my life outside of being Ladybug. Especially since he’s sort of famous and if he suddenly started hanging around me beyond the mask, it would raise too many suspicions.” 

That would mean I would have to fly under the radar with him as Adrien and me as Marinette. Maybe playing the shy awkward girl would be in my best interest to keep his attention away from me. Then again the idea of acting like a lovesick girl also made me want to gag.

“Then what about Hawkmoth? I’m about 99.9% sure it’s Adrien’s dad, especially after seeing the spoilers for the ‘Collector’ episode.” I admitted. “And why was I only given some of the information if I was always destined for this life?”

Tikki offered a patient look. “Some things you are just meant not to know until the time is right. This is your second chance and you will eventually need more help to overcome those uncertainties in the future. As well as grow into being Ladybug so you can unlock the full potential of the miraculous.”

“Wait, so does that mean I have to level up like some sailor moon character?” I asked hesitantly, “I’m going to have to go through some tedious character arcs or something like a clique anime?”

Tikki just shrugged her tiny shoulders and I huffed feeling my annoyance return.

“Well I guess it’s now or never right?” I said while securing the tiny earrings in my ears. Taking one final breath I look towards the little Kwami. “Transform me.”

Praise black baby Jesus and all the little angels, because I was saved the embarrassing transformation sequence from the show, and instead the suit just magically formed across my body with a bright light and pink sparkles. I glanced in the mirror and saw the mask was small but covered a majority of my freckles. The transformation had swept my hair into twin tails all on it’s own with a bright red ribbon hanging down along with my hair. I guess this would help keep my secret even better if I never managed to wear my hair like this in public.

Going through the skylight of my room onto the adorable little balcony I uncliped the yoyo hanging from my waist and examined the palm sized device. It reminded me of some sort of tension clip that retracted with a small tug on the string. 

A little disbelief shot through me. There was no way I was going to be able to use this properly. I couldn’t even use a regular yoyo, let alone one I was supposed to fight with. I was going to knock myself out instead of the supervillians. 

I’m not freakin batman here.

Saying a mental prayer I faced the direction most of the sirens were coming from and threw the yoyo out towards the city. It sailed through the sky with alarming speed and way farther than I had intended for it to go. When I felt the tension of the strip pull, pure instinct kicked in and I gave the little rope a small tug.

I immediately regretted my decision when I felt the string jerk my whole body in the direction of the yoyo. Next thing I knew I was airborne and sailing across the sky. I’d like to admit the high pitched girlish scream that left my body was not my own, but then I’d be lying. About halfway in the air, I left the tension on the string release and could only assume the yoyo had let go of whatever hold it had on and then I was free falling. 

My arms waved wildly in the air and then there was a flash of black before my body collided with a firm surface and I felt arms wrap around my torso. Our bodies jerked to a stop hanging upside down and I opened my eyes I hadn’t even realize I had closed to meet bright green ones with a cat like slit. 

“Well hello there, nice of you to drop in.” his raspy playful voice had a sort of carefree tone. Like it was unused but more natural than I would have guessed. His arms were still wrapped around me, but I didn’t pay too much attention and just smiled a little embarrassed. 

“Sorry, first time flier.” It was then I took in the rest of his face as a wide grin grew across the uncovered half. The black mask went down to the tip of his nose into a sharp point and his yellow blonde hair was longer than I expected. Still short enough it wouldn’t touch his shoulders but in it’s unkempt state it had a sort of shaggy look to it.

He seemed to be doing the same sort of assessment but I looked down, or in reality up, to tug against the yoyo and dislodge it from his baton that was holding us up. When I felt the strings come loosen we both executed an half flip and landed upwards on our feet.

“You must be the partner my Kwami talked about. I’m...” He paused to think, “Chat Noir... yeah, Chat Noir.”

I moved to pick up his baton that had somehow retracted and fallen to the ground. As I held it out to him I gave a tight smile, “I’m Ladybug.” I answered simply as he moved to take the baton.

A sudden crashing sound came as a building in the distance slowly leaned to the side and then collapsed to the ground. A dark feeling of horror filled my gut at the though of anyone being in the building when it collapsed. Was this what Fu meant went he said this was how reality was and not a simple kids show? That real peoples lives were on the line here and I would now be the one responsible to save them?

Chat Noir seemed to react faster than I could and was already using his baton to propel himself to the building above us. It managed to snap me out of whatever stupor I was in, and with more confidence flung my yoyo out to follow him.

When we reached the stadium I saw a much larger Stoneheart hovering over a shaking Kim. In a split second Chat was on the ground saying something I couldn’t hear to Stoneheart while Kim made a hasty escape towards the exit. 

Stoneheart became enraged and slammed a huge fist into the ground where Chat had manged to roll out and dodge successfully. Before I could yell for him to stop he leaped into the air hand slammed his baton down on top of Stoneheart. The impact just cause the cracks in the stone to light up and then we watched as he grew a bit more in size.

Sighing I jumped into the the air and threw my yoyo out at Stoneheart legs. I didn’t want to wait until He decided to throw the freakin soccer goal at Alya who was busy filming in the entrance to the field. Chat managed to pause and watch as I slid beneath Stoneheart's gaping feet and pop up on the other side giving the string a harsh yank, causing the stone giant to collapse to the ground 

I’m not sure I would have had the confidence to perform such a move if i hadn’t seen the animated Ladybug do it before. Chat stood beside me with a sort of dazed look on his face as he watched me. 

“You can’t hit him, or it will just make him grow bigger.” I spoke quickly. He snapped out of his daze and a small scowl sprung across his face. 

“How are we supposed to defeat him then?” He demanded.

“We’ll use our powers...” I replied a bit distractedly as we watched Stoneheart struggle to his feet. Was I seriously going to have to shout out Lucky Charm? That would be super embarrassing. 

During my private musing Chat decided to take it upon himself to show me I would indeed have to shout my super power and reached his hand out as he yelled for his Catacylsm. 

“Cool!” he said as he watched black voided spots dance around his fingers. I didn’t even bother to stop him when he reached for the goal post beside us. There was no way I was going to let him touch Ivan with that cursed hand.

When the post crumbled into dark ash he charged straight in and landed his hand on the stone foot in front of him. It was like watching a real life version of the scene play out as Chat realized he only got one shot with his powers and then Stoneheart knocked him back in my direction.

I sighed wearily. “You only get one shot with your powers and then you have 5 minutes before your transformation wears away.” I said holding out a hand to help him up. He looked a little stunned but managed to grasp my hand as he hauled himself upright. “Also don’t ever use your powers against them. There is just a regular person behind that Akuma and if you used your powers on them, it could kill them.”

Chat managed to look horrified at the thought and I knew he had learned his lesson of how dangerous his powers actually were.

Holding my yoyo and saying another mental prayer, I tossed it into the air and yelled Lucky Charm. A flash of light and the exact rubber suit from the episode fell from the sky into my my arms. Glancing down I was shocked to see the hose on the ground flash with my ladybug vision. 

That was super helpful. 

Hastily attaching the suit to the hose and securing it tightly I glanced at Chat with a gleeful grin. He looked at me warily, and before he could protest I had my yoyo wrapped around his ankles. 

“Don’t resist kitty cat.” I said as I gave a sharp tug and began spinning him around in a circle. He let out a startled yelp and then a surprising string of explicates as I released the yoyo towards an oncoming Stoneheart. Just as expected Stoneheart caught Chat easily and I ran towards the two before leaping into the air. “Catch me if you can!”

Stoneheart, to stunned to do anything else, released the possessed note and caught me and the rubber suit in his now freed fist.

“Hey you there!” I shouted to Alya. She jerked her head up from her phone with a shocked expression. “Turn on the water hose!”

I felt a sort of pride as Alya didn’t hesitate for a second and ran towards the faucet opening it to full blast. There was a short moment of uncomfortable tightness when the suit filled with water but then I felt Stoneheart’s fist open and jumped down to the ground at a full sprint. 

When I reached the note I slammed my foot down and watched as the akuma flew out into the sky. A part of me already knew I couldn’t catch it yet. Hawkmoth needed to present himself to Paris, and this was the only way I knew how to do it. 

When I turned back around Ivan was already back to normal and Chat was on the ground looking at me with a starstruck expression. Oh no.

He jumped up and rushed over toward me, “You were incredible Ladybug! You really did it.”

I tried to hold back a grimace but by the fading smile on chat face I knew I didn’t manage accomplish it, “It’s not over just yet.”

“What do you mean?” he asked confused. The beeping sound of his ring drew out attention and I just gave him a small smile.

“You should probably leave. It would be bad for anyone to know your secret identity.”

He studied me for a moment unsure, but then a playful smirk replaced the expression and a involuntary flip of my stomach followed. 

Oh no. Not happening. Smirking is not sexy, it’s cocky. 

“I suppose it’s only for the best. I don’t think you could handle what’s behind the mask.” He purred. Actually purred at me!

“Scat kitty, before I call animal control.” I said jerking a thumb behind me.

He was laughing as he ran towards the edge of the field and extended his baton towards the far wall. “Farewell my lady!”

I shook my head as I swooped down and snapped up the crumpled note. Unfolding it I read the contents and the feeling of anger welled up inside of me. That note didn’t have the same phrasing from the show at all. While it still ridiculed Ivan for not being brave enough to confess to Mylene, it also said terrible things about her and the names Kim had called Ivan were vulgar and horrible.

Ivan was still on the ground but he had watched me read the note. When I walked over to him and knelt down he hung his head. 

“He always makes fun of me.” Ivan said frustrated.

I handed him back the note and gave him an encouraging smile. “You should never be ashamed of liking someone. Bullies are just people who are unsatisfied with their own life and try to make others around them more miserable than they are.”

I watched as his expression turned less angry and a small smile broke across his face.

“Amazing! Spectacular! Are you the protector of Paris?! How did you get your powers?!” Alya shouted drawing our attention over to the kneeling girl with the phone pointed in my face. I blinked before rising slowly and backing away. “Were you bitten by a radioactive bug? I have so many questions!”

When I was far enough away that I knew Alya couldn’t tackle me to the ground and demand those questions first hand, I turned to her with a smile. “My name is Ladybug.”

When I arrived home, my parents were overjoyed to see that I was safe. I told them I was taking shelter from the attack with students at school. When they said they had called the school, I told them they probably couldn’t find me because things had gotten so hectic once a giant stone monster tore a hole in the building.

We spent the next two hours discussing the ramifications behind superheros and supervillians in Paris while we watched the news. What really sucked was that none of the destruction was able to be dealt with since I couldn’t use my Miraculous restoration until I managed to secure the Akuma. 

Once I had talked with my parents, I snagged a few pastries and cookies for Tikki and told my parents I was going to turn in early from all the scariness of the day. Seems that being Ladybug burned some serious calories and Tikki warned me I would probably feel hungry all the time now. 

Tikki and I watched on my computer as the newly multiplied akuma started possessing people on the streets. Tikki looked at me slightly confused.

“Why didn’t you capture the akuma?” 

“In the show, Hawkmoth uses the cloud of akuma to make his presence known to Paris. Paris needs to know there is a specific threat out there. I hated making the choice not to capture it today, but I didn’t see any other way to show that Ladybug and Chat Noir are working to save Paris and not decide to place the blame on us when the police are unable to protect them.” I explained. “The Police are going to try to blame us at some point. I would rather it happen now then later.”

Tikki seemed to think this over for a moment. “You know anyone else would have just captured the akuma knowing what you know, but you were thinking about the long term.”

“I’m not strong enough, and we don’t have enough allies. If I’m going to have to play out these scenarios, I’m going to do my best to either stop them or make them better in any way I can, but even I know I can’t control everything. I need to pick my battles, and this was just one of them.”

“Well I’m proud of you Marie. I know this situation is hard for you, but you have a wonderful heart, that is so selfless.”

I didn’t know how to respond. While I knew Tikki was trying to offer me a measure of comfort, I still felt turn completely upside down. 

And the fact that I either had to accept things as they currently were, or risk innocents lives was something I wasn’t entirely sure I could handle.


	2. Origins Pt.2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone who has left Kudos, Bookmarks and comments! Here is the next chapter since I couldn't wait any longer to post it! I updated the warnings and tags to this work because somehow, at 4 in the morning, got confused by the uploading system and realized my tags and warnings were not correct. Now everything is way more chill so hopeful most everyone can enjoy!

The next morning went about the same with a part of me wishing that when I woke up, the whole thing was just a dream. When I turned the alarm off on my phone there was no such luck.

I knew I was dragging my feet to get to school, but the idea of dealing with all the craziness again really got me down. I didn’t even want to think about seeing Adrien without the mask or convincing Ivan to write Mylene a song. It was all so against what I really wanted to do, but I knew it needed to be done.

When I walked up the stairs to the school Alya was standing at the entrance waiting for me. She bounced on her toes with an excited smile on her face.

“Girl! You will not believe the videos I got of all the action yesterday! They even put it on the news! Can you believe it?!”

“I know I saw it on tv last night. I can’t believe villains and superheros are real.” For real though. On top of dying and waking up in what I thought was a fictional world. Magic existing on top of everything really sealed the deal on crazy.

As she showed me her new ladyblog I nodded and smiled and made the appropriate comments until we walked up on Chloe ridiculing Ivan and then him stopping off towards the locker rooms. Alya was already walking over to give Chloe a piece of her mind while I took the opportunity to follow Ivan.

When I found him, he was sitting on the floor hunched over with his headphone on. I knelt down and touched his arm to get his attention. 

He looked up at me as if startled before his expression morphed into anger.

“You should tell Mylene how you feel.” I offered with what I hoped was an encouraging smile.

He looked away with a scowl, “I have no idea what your talking about.”

“Look Ivan, I’m not here to pick on you, I’ve seen the way you look at her and I’ve also seen the way she looks at you. I think you two are really good for each other.” I really had noticed the way Mylene looked at Ivan before he stomped away from Chloe’s nagging. She was shy, but she had definitely caught feelings.

Ivan looked embarrassed but I held my hands up to show I wasn’t trying to judge.

“Look we all find it hard to express ourselves to someone we like. Maybe you could write her a note or maybe a song to tell her how you feel?” I had to suppress the urge to tell him not to actually sing it to her and just give her the written note, but we needed to deal with this akuma sooner rather than later. It would all work out in the end eventually... Hopefully. And Ivan would learn that Mylene was overly skittish and a gentle patience was necessary with her. 

His eyes lit up at my suggestion, “I could maybe write her a song!”

“Then there you go. Write about your feeling for her in the form of a song.” I said happily. I watched as he jumped up and rushed off with a quick thanks.

When I exited the locker room I found Alya looking around for where I had disappeared to. She started going over the whole event with Ladybug again. She was totally starstruck, but even if this wasn’t the Anna I knew, she still acted the same when it came to her passions. 

When we arrived at the classroom Alya gasped loudly while placing a hand over her mouth.

I turned to see what had drawn her attention and just like the show I saw a blonde haired boy kneeling beside the bench that was temporarily mine. I’ll admit it was somewhat suspicious seeing him with gum stuck to his finger and the seat, but I liked to think I wouldn’t rush to anger even if I hadn’t know the situation before hand.

Instead of saying anything however I just walked over and tapped him on the shoulder. He jumped up and I got my first look at Adrien Agreste without with mask of Chat Noir. His hair was actually shorter on the sides than the top and was swept back into a forced fashionable style. I could see how he could look totally different with it loose and unkempt. 

No banana boy here thank god. 

His eyes were now a pretty and bright emerald green. It was actually shocking to see such a distinct green color in person. Usually those with green eyes sometimes looked like they had hazel of grey eyes depending on the lighting. 

He looked alarmed and embarrassed obviously thinking I would suspect he had been the one to place the gum there. I just raised an eyebrow and glanced over my shoulder to glare at the blonde girl laughing maniacally.

“Let me guess, Chloe put gum on the seat?” I asked, causing Chloe to immediately squawk in indignation. I turned back to face Adrien waiting for an answer. 

He seemed startled with his mouth opening and closing as if unsure whether he wanted to admit to Chloe’s actions or not.

I huffed slightly annoyed by his indecision and faced in Nino’s direction. “So?”

“Yeah it was Chloe.” Nino replied without missing a beat.

“Thank you Nino.”

I turned back towards Adrien and just rifled through my bag until I found a small napkin and some hand sanitizer I had packed this morning for this exact scenario. Handing the hand sanitizer over to Adrien who took it automatically while blinking at me stunned. I swept past him and placed the napkin over the gum. I was proud to say this was going to be my first move in flying under the radar with Adrien. If I didn’t cause him to feel the need to explain what had happened and try to be my friend, maybe I could just be one of the many faces in class.

Yes it was likely Marinette was out of Adrien’s sights specifically because of her quick judgment of the situation and her crippling bashfulness when dealing with him, but the idea made me almost physically ill and I needed to keep a firm separation away from having my identity figured out. If that meant distancing myself from him in both parts of my life, all the better. 

“You should use that after touching anything that’s been in Chloe’s mouth. You wouldn’t want to catch something.” I said pressuring a smirk while he still stood there frozen in place. The room erupted in roaring laughter and I managed to ignore Chloe’s increasingly piercing screams. Never react to a bully, you only enable them to know they’ve gotten under your skin.

Adrien seemed to shake himself out of his shock and surprising also ignore Chloe’s whining. “Why didn’t you assume I was the one who did it?” he asked puzzled, but to my personal glee, still doing what I had said and using the hand sanitizer before handing me back the bottle.

“Adrie-chu how could you?!” Chloe cried pitifully.

“Because no one is as hateful as Chloe. The likelihood that someone I had never met before, had put gum on my seat, was smaller than just assuming it was the person who likes to torment me regularly.” I answered before sitting down. 

Adrien stood there while Alya made her way around to the other side and sat down beside me. He looked like he wanted to say something more, but Madame Bustier chose that timely moment to come in and call the class to order.

Alya leaned over with her phone held out in front of me. On it was pictures of Adrien and his father on the front of magazines. I was loathed to admit it, but when Adrien posed for magazine covers, he was utterly swoon worthy. If I was in this situation a bit more organically, I might possibly have become the stuttering mess Marinette was in the show. I mean, who goes to school with famous teen Parisian models?

“I’m surprised you didn’t assume he was the one putting gum on your seat. He’s obviously the friend Chloe was talking about. He could have easily been as awful as she is.” Alya whispered. “He’s rich and a famous model. I wouldn’t have been so nice to him.”

“Like I said, Chloe is a one of a kind tormentor.” I whispered before glancing back and seeing the blonde girl herself glaring daggers at me. “I mean, even Sabrina isn’t as awful as Chloe, and they are practically joined at the hip.”

“Well you are officially my new favorite person, and that’s saying a lot considering I’m half in love with Ladybug as of yesterday.” Alya chuckled.

I snickered softly and nudged her with me elbow as class began.

Unfortunately the teacher hadn’t even made it through roll call when Ivan stormed in as Stoneheart once again. The class scattered and I watched carefully as Adrien’s eyes narrowed slightly before ducking out of the classroom door Ivan had just stormed through. 

There had been a tiny sliver of doubt that Chat Noir might have been someone else. Adrien didn’t quite sound the same as Chat. While Chat had a sort of excited squeak to his voice that was more carefree. Adrien’s voice sounded more polite and repressed.

Rushing toward the back with my purse and Tikki safety tucked inside, I watched helplessly as Ivan snatched up Mylene and Chloe, before tearing another hole through the wall and exited the building onto the street. 

Alya already had her phone out recording. A part of me became a little bitter to the idea of her being excited when people were in danger. It made me question the point of the Ladyblog and her candidacy for a future miraculous holder. I pushed the thought aside quickly. Now was not the time to be mad at her lack of tack.

“Common girl! Let’s follow him!”

I shook my head forcefully, a little of my frustration leaking out, “Two of our classmates are in danger. I’m not going to add more risk to the situation by following.”

Her eyes widened and then a slightly sheepish expression grew across her face. “You’re right, you stay here. But I need to record this. Paris should see the facts of the situation first hand, and if I can be the person to provide that I will. I’ll make sure to stay away at a safe distance. I won’t get in the way.”

I just nodded hoping she was telling the truth. It made me feel slightly better knowing she would make a conscious effort. When I watched her rush out of the room I followed behind. 

Ducking into an empty classroom I opened the latch to my purse. 

“I guess it’s show time Tikki. Transform me!”

As it turns out Alya was obviously attempting to stay out of the way, but when I came upon the scene to see my leather clad partner throwing his baton out to prevent Alya from being smashed by a flying car I let out of cry of panic. Thankfully, just like the show, the baton had prevented the worst of it but the car had still pinned her against the wall. 

Moving fast and following the scene, I was able to maneuver my yoyo around the car, and using my amplified strength, viciously yank on the string long enough for Alya to escape. 

Alya looked up at me slightly manic as I strode forward and bounced my yoyo against Chat’s fallen baton and catching it in the air. 

“The situation is too dangerous, you can not be here.” I emphasized sternly. I knew she was still reeling from almost getting crushed by a car, so hopefully with the new experience, she would learn for the future. 

Launching myself through the streets with my yoyo, I caught up with the slow moving Stonehearts making their way toward the Eiffel tower. I spotted Chat Noir hanging from the grip of one of the smaller minions and threw the baton directly at the blonde head. 

“Chat Noir! Extend it!”

After a pause I saw the metal baton extend out and Chat Noir slip free onto the ground. Hooking my yoyo onto his ankle I yanked him away from the oncoming fist just as it was coming down. 

“Sorry I’m late.” I offered grinning down at the masked hero. 

“My Lady, have I ever told you, you turn my world upside down?” he replied with a seductive look, that was deflated only slightly with his ridiculous position. I just rolled my eyes as I felt the beginning of the Chat Noir puns making themselves known. 

“How charming, but your timing needs work.” I replied turning to watch the group of Stonehearts make their way towards us.

Jumping to the nearby roof I vaulted back towards the tower trusting my partner to follow me. 

“Hey aren’t we supposed to take care of them?!” he demanded behind me. I paused on a roof to point towards the tower. 

“No, We need to go to the source of all this to deal with them all.”

We watched as helicopters flew around the tower and Ivan yelled down at the Mayor who was speaking through a microphone. As Ivan began reeling his arm back to throw Chloe to the ground I didn’t even hesitate to fling myself in her direction and catch her easily before her smacked into the pavement.

Chloe let out a half mumble which I didn’t catch as we skidded to a hault, but had strong suspicions as to what was said and just quirked an eyebrow up. Releasing her she rushed to her father who embraced her gratefully. I was glad to know I had made it just in time. While Chloe may be awful, she was still just a kid and someones child. No one deserved to see their own child suffer.

I stood up at saw the police begin to ready their weapons and threw my hand out “No, if you hit him, he’ll just grow bigger, and he’s still just a kid! This isn’t his fault!” 

Sabrina’s father hesitated for a moment. His face quickly morphed into anger that was rightfully directed at me. “You’ve already failed once! What makes you think you can do anything?!”

I faltered slightly as I looked back and saw just how much bigger Ivan had grown since leaving the classroom. Deep inside I still hadn’t truly accepted that all this was real. That one day I was going to wake up from all this. I didn’t deserve to die and have destiny force me into this position. What if I failed and died again? This was my last chance, and my first life was robbed from me just because I did something brave and selfless. 

Look where being brave and selfless got me.

Hadn’t I just been thinking about how no parent deserves to see their child suffer? What about my parents? Were they mourning the loss of their child right now? Where was my place in this world if I wasn’t Marie, but I didn’t feel like Marinette.

Who am I anymore?

Why me?

I turned to Chat. He looked at me like he was waiting for further direction. I felt the helplessness and doubt wash over me as tears began to pool in my eyes. Marinette cried at this part for very different reasons, but it seems we were never that different from the beginning. 

There was no one here to tell me what I needed to do or convince me this was what destiny had written, because it knew I would run in front of that bus. 

It just wasn’t fair.

“How can I do this Chat?” I asked him not really expecting him to answer. “People’s lives are at risk, but so is ours. Why wasn’t someone braver and better chosen to to this instead of me? I’m just so afraid!”

I felt the tears begin to run down my face and Chat’s expression transitioned from shock, to understanding and finally sympathy. 

“No, I believe you were perfectly chosen for this.” He reached out at placed his hand on my shoulder before pointing behind me where Chloe stood with her father. “You rushed to save her without hesitating, and without you, she wouldn’t be here.” I could see the glimmer of gratefulness and pride in his eyes. “Without us, this city won’t make it, and we’ll be the ones to prove it. Even if that means proving it to ourselves.”

I stared at Chat in astonishment. I knew this scene by heart from the show, but just the added dialogue to my own fear and self doubt made me look at my partner in a new light. He was right, and while I may have doubt now, it still meant someone needed to be the hero to save these people. If destiny thought I was the best choice for this, then that must mean I just had to prove it to myself as well. 

Hesitantly I blinked up at Chat and a small smile tugged at my lips. “Thank you Chat.”

The moment was interrupted when Ivan roared loudly and an explosion of play butterflies flew out of his mouth and into the air. 

Seeing a fluttering giant head in the air was absolutely horrifying. Hawk Moth made his spiel about handing over our miraculous and I waited patiently for him to make himself known to the people of Paris. 

Offering a slow clap and speaking loudly enough for the cameras to hear me I strode forward. “Nice try Hawk Moth, but we all know who the real villain is. Only someone as corrupt as you could turn innocent victims into villains for your own selfish goals! We will not stand by while you hurt the people of Paris! We will hunt you down and take back the power that should be used for good!”

With my speech done I ran forward and propelled myself into the air. Activating the de-evilese power of my yoyo I swept it across the cloud of butterflies, effectively catching every single dark butterfly before landing onto the tower and turning towards the city knowing the cameras would catch every word I said. 

“People of Paris, no matter who wishes harm against you, Chat Noir and I promise to keep you safe!” When I lifted the yoyo, I opened the latch and watched as a cloud of white butterflies burst into the sky. When the cloud dispersed I saw the police and mayor cheering at the ground. 

Chat Noir was motionless as he stared directly at me. Despite whatever romantic conclusion he may or may not be coming to, this was not the time to dwell on that particular issue at this moment. 

The rest of the fight with Stoneheart went pretty identical to the show. This time I didn’t hesitate to cleanse the Akuma from the song Ivan had written. I didn’t even feel that silly when I tossed the lucky Charm and activated the Ladybug heal across the city. The cloud of ladybugs where the exact same that had surrounded me when I was hit by that bus and I stared in awe as the city became whole once again. 

Chat Noir gasped behind me, propping Ivan up against his shoulder, “Are you seeing this?!”

“I guess it’s a miracle.” I murmured quietly.

While the Paris police began clearing their blockade and Chat Noir was snagged by some reporters to answer questions of his own I approached Mylene and Ivan and placed a comforting hand on both their shoulders. 

“I think the two of you should probably talk.” Ivan looked flustered but Mylene looked confused and wary. I pulled out the song Ivan had written and handed it over to Mylene. “Maybe this will help.”

When I walked away I noticed Chat had already extracted himself from the reporters and was watching me with a small smile. We watched as Mylene read Ivan’s song and then the adorable embrace between the two.

They were just so cute, I couldn’t help the small dreamy sigh that escaped from watching them. “Oh gosh, They are just made for each other aren’t they?”

I half expected Chat to say ‘just like us’ and ruin the moment but when I heard his miraculous beep beside me, I looked up and saw him watching me with an unreadable expression on his face. 

“Chat?”

My voice must have startled him from whatever inner thoughts he was having and a Cheshire like smirk settled in place. “Well it sounds like I’m about to turn back into a pumpkin my lady. This has been an absolute pleasure.” He said with a theatrical bow.

“Ri-ght. Well I guess I’ll see you around Chat Noir. Stay safe.” I gave a dramatic eye roll before throwing my yoyo out and making a quick escape. I wasn’t ready to face whatever his lack of pushy flirtations and penetrating gaze meant. There was too much going on in my brand new messed up life to worry about the famous love square from the show and how I was supposed to fit in it.

When I arrived home I watched the news on my computer with Tikki while we gorged ourselves on sweets and wonderful confections my parents had made to celebrate Paris being saved. 

This superhero gig really made a girl hungry.

Turns out that there had been some casualties from the first attack, but thankfully all the missing people or those injured were instantly healed and reappeared where they had been before the attack. Ivan, Mylene and Chloe gave a small interview to the reporters, and Ivan explained he couldn’t remember much while under the influence of Hawk Moth. Just times where he could here his voice in his head telling him what to do.

I guess I was grateful my miraculous heal could cheat death like that.

I turned to Tikki who was taking huge chunks our of her cookie. I’ll never understand where it actually goes since her whole body was as small as my pinkie.

“Tikki?”

“Yes Marie?”

“What happened with my parents and Anna?” I asked softly. “You know in the other world?”

Tikki sat there quietly for a moment. “Do you really want to know?”

I paused thinking it over. “Maybe one day? When all this is a little easier. Right now I don’t think I can handle the answer.”

Tikki nods before turning back towards my computer monitor.

 

~~~~~~

The next day, when Alya and I walked into the classroom, I stopped her from heading to our previous seat and grinned while pointing up at the seat behind Nino who was watching us with obvious humor. We casually sat down waiting for the bratty storm that would unleash at any time. 

Chloe of course did not disappoint. When she spotted us in our seat she pointed to the one in the front row fuming, “You’re in the wrong seat. Get lost!”

“Oh no Chloe. I was sure when you spit your gum onto that seat, you were claiming it as your own. I mean that’s what immature brats do, so I’m sure you will be perfectly comfortable taking the seat you so disgustingly claimed. So how about you take your attitude and get lost?” I pronounced, followed by the rest of the class cheering and laughing. 

Chloe growled and clenched her fists, but saw she had been beaten. 

It was small comfort that Chloe knew when to back down at least.

Adrien walked into class shortly after and greeted Nino enthusiastically, he then surprisingly and also not surprisingly turned to me and smiled widely and waved in my direction. “Good morning!”

I blinked slowly, wondering how I should react to his enthusiasm and settled and a polite smile and small wave of my own, “Morning.”

When he finally sat down, I looked over at Alya with an obvious ‘what the hell?’ expression but she had a sly look on her face that spoke of exactly what she thought of the exchange and nudged me aggressively in the side. I opted to ignore her jibe and stare straight ahead instead until class began.

We finally managed to get through a full day at school.

Something I had a feeling would become more of a rare accomplish with how often our classmates would be getting akumatized.

Some students had to stick around had catch up with specific teachers and get whatever coursework they hadn’t been able to obtain thanks to the akuma attacks. When I finally managed to drag myself to the entrance of the school I smacked myself in the head.

It was raining.

And I didn’t pack a damn umbrella. 

I should have freakin known better!

This one scene I had been planning on avoiding from the very beginning. Besides, there was no need for Adrien to explain the gum situation to me when I had halted the misunderstanding from the very beginning. Still I knew it was supposed to rain today, so I should have been prepared regardless.

Steeling myself, I was prepared to rush across the street to my house when a familiar voice stopped me dead in my tracks. 

“Forgot an umbrella?”

I turned to the side and spotted Adrien looking down at me with a warm smile. It sent involuntary flutters in my stomach and I mentally berated myself for getting swoony over his pretty face. I tried to act casual with a slight shrug. “Yeah, but my house is literally right across the street, so it’s no big deal if I get wet.”

He looked over to where I was pointing and his eyes widened in surprise. “Wow you live really close.”

“And yet, I’ll probably end up being late most days to school this year.” I deadpaned

His head tilted back as he let out a bark of laughter. Oh he was really pretty when he laughed. 

No Marie! Bad!

“Well why don’t I walk you across the street then, so you can at least avoid getting drenched?” he offered releasing the catch on his umbrella and holding it up over us.

“Oh no, you don’t have to do that.” I protested, but he was already shaking his head.

“I insist, it’s the least I can do since you so readily believed I wasn’t behind Chloe’s nasty prank.” 

I hesitated for a moment unsure. I figured if I kept refusing, he may be inclined to pay more attention to me and wonder why I didn’t want to be around him. Passive attention was the goal here, and I needed to play this right. “If you’re sure...” 

“Oh absolutely!” I saw the excitement light up his face. and then I realized, he really must be very lonely having only Chloe as a friend all this time. Surprisingly I sort of understood where he was coming from. I felt like a stranger here. I may have my parents and now Alya, but I didn’t know anyone else. Everything about this world was new to me and if I thought to much on the idea I felt like I was slowly drowning.

When we walked down the steps, Adrien motioned for his driver to wait a moment and pointed at the Bakery across the street. We walked slowly and silently for a moment until he broke the silence. 

“I’ve never been to school.” He began the familiar dialogue softly, I glanced up and saw him watching me with the same exact expression he had given Ladybug after the akuma fight. “I’ve never had real friends before. But when you accepted me without prejudice, especially since I now know Chloe’s reputation after talking to Nino, I was relieved and grateful.”

The conversation had suddenly taken a turn and I couldn’t wrap my brain around what this was leading to. “Well I try give people a chance, whenever I can. The situation was sketchy at best, but I like to think I could at least understand everything before drawing any conclusion.” 

He nodded before turning away as we stopped at the cross walk and waited for the light to change. I suddenly noticed how close his body was with us both huddled together underneath his umbrella. I felt my neck and cheeks flush and prayed it would go away before I made a fool of myself.

“Even Nino said he would have been suspicious of me if you hadn’t put faith in me so quickly like you did. He said you were the one person in class he could trust to judge peoples character the best.” Adrien continued just as the light signaled for us to cross. 

I hummed thoughtfully thinking about Nino’s faith in me. I didn’t know anyone like Nino from my previous life, but whoever Marinette was to him, was obviously someone he trusted so surely. 

When we reached the bakery I led us around back so I wouldn’t go through the bakery and possibly disturb any customers inside. When we reached the back door I turned to thank Adrien and finally make an escape when my breath caught at the expression on his face. 

It was intense. I watched, suddenly frozen to my spot as he reached over and brushed a long piece of my bangs that had fallen behind my ear. I couldn’t prevent the flush from showing then and an amused gleam shown in his eyes.

“Thank you Marinette. I hope you and I can be friends.” he whispered. His body was still too close and his warm breath washed over my face. 

Zapp.

My brain was no longer running on all spokes and cylinders. Circuits had officially fried to oblivion and I was sure I had melted into a puddle of goo that would be washed away with the rain.

When a small part of my brain remembered to reply I was dismayed with my brain to mouth connection obviously having been severed. “O-Oh of course! Friends! We are friends! Best totally friends. I-I mean totally best friends!” I managed to snap my mouth closed before I made an even bigger moron of myself.

When the expression on his face turned ecstatic I was definitely never going to recover from this. A distant part of my brain was shouting ‘nooooooooooooo’ but my heart was like ‘hell yaaaaaaaaaaaas’

“You mean it?” he asked excitedly. All I could manage was a jerk of a nod. He looked down at me fondly and turned away to head back to school. “Well I guess I’ll see you at school tomorrow then. Bye Marinette!”

Before I could reply he was already walking away. I leaned against the door trying and failing to catch my breath as my heart was beating out of my chest. Tikki floated up from out of my purse with her knowing grin. 

“Tikki what the hell was that?!” I whisper shouted.

“Looks like your partner has taken an interest in your civilian self!” she replied happily.

“No! This was not how it was supposed to go! He was supposed to ignore me and we were never supposed to have talked to today at all and I was supposed to avoid any potential feelings for him! I might as well have just let it play out like the show, and then maybe I wouldn’t be dealing with whatever the hell this mess is!”

“Maybe destiny knew you wouldn’t have fallen for him, had you known what the outcome was supposed to be. Remember your knowledge of this world will not always be 100% the same. Besides. Some things are apparently just meant to be.” Tikki replied with a shrug of her tiny shoulders.

“Sooooo not helping Tikki! What am I going to do now?” I groaned.

“Just follow your heart. It’s the best and most honest part of who you are.”

“Well I guess the days of cool Marie are over. Hello stuttering Marinette. Glad I could measure up to your legacy.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Does anyone have a specific order they believe the episodes play out chronologically? I have a list I compiled on my own for the sake of plot and my own observations, but this show is seriously confusing sometimes.


End file.
